Launch was surreal. No matter how often you’ve seen it on tv, you are just more connected to it in person. The huge flame was surprisingly bright even in the daylight. It was shocking that while we could still hear the rumble and pop of the boosters, they announced the astronauts “are now 15 miles in altitude and 15 miles downrange.” Moments later they were traveling at 4 miles per second. And then 5 miles per second.

After watching the shuttle on the pad for a couple of hours you felt connected to the folks inside. They are the lucky ones.